What's the best Antivirus program for my home PC?

Answer 1

For the most part, it's not which Antivirus program you have, but rather how up-to-date it is. Norton and McAffee are both very good, but AVG and Avast which are free will do the job just as well.

More important than a good anti-virus program however, is safe computing pracice. I've never gotten a virus on my computer, even for the several years at a time that I didn't have any antivirus software. Generally the things to avoid are:

1) Running pirated software, especially those downloaded from Peer To Peer sites like Bittorrent or LimeWire. It's not uncommon for pirates to either accidentally or intentionally put viruses into software, and then upload it to these sites. Because of the nature of these sites, it's very difficult to remove them once someone notices that they're infected.

2) Opening executable attachments from people you don't know, or which have suspicious titles or verbage. If someone sends you a Word document every day and writes a three-paragraph description in the text of the email, but on Tuesday, you get their attachment and the email just says "Here's the file you wanted.", there's a good chance that it's infected. Treat the file very carefully.

3) Read those warnings your computer gives you. When you run a Word or Excel file that's just supposed to be a static report that some's giving you, and your copy of Word says "This file is trying to execute code that could be dangerous", believe it, and disallow the Macros until you can confirm with the sender that there is something that should be running.

Basically, it all boils down to "Be cautious about programs you get from other people." Anything that installs on your computer is a possible source of viruses, and you should try to make sure that you understand why it's installing before you let it do so.

Answer 2

2

Answer 3

This review picks the best antivirus software based on its virus detection abilities, features, and breadth of protection.

1) McAfee VirusScan Plus
Antivirus, antispyware, and firewall are included in this 'mini-suite' from McAfee. An ideal candidate for those seeking robust protection without all the bloat of traditional Internet security suites.
http://us.mcafee.com/

2) McAfee Internet Security
For those seeking a full blown Internet security suite, McAfee Internet Security offers traditional antivirus, firewall and antispyware complete with spam and phishing protection as well as backup utilities. McAfee's superb detection rates are near legendary.
http://cws.internet.com/file/18028.htm

3) BitDefender Professional Edition
Softwin's BitDefender Professional protects against viruses, spyware, and instant messaging threats, as well as offering firewall rules to block undesirable traffic and a privacy gateway to keep your identity and preferences private while surfing the Internet.
http://www.bitdefender.com/bd/site/downloads.php?menu_id=2

4) Platinum Internet Security
Panda Software's Platinum Internet Security combines antivirus, firewall, and spam filtering along with its highly touted TruPrevent Technology. Both AV-Test.org and ICSA Labs have tested the TruPrevent claims of behavioral, non-signature detection of new malware and found the claims to be true. (TruPrevent Technology can also be purchased separately as an add-on to antivirus protection from other vendors).
http://www.pandasoftware.com/products/platinum_is2006_part.htm

5) PC-cillin Internet Security Suite
Building on its solid antivirus capabilities, PC-cillin Internet Security Suite automatically checks for new virus updates every 3 hours and the spam prevention includes a whitelist, blacklist, and Bayesian filter - all at a price substantially lower than many other antivirus suites. If spyware is a problem, consider supplementing the spyware scanner in PC-cillin with either Windows Defender or CounterSpy.
http://trendmicro.com/vinfo

6) Kaspersky Anti-Virus Personal
Kaspersky offers excellent antivirus protection, perhaps unsurpassed in its ability to recognize various compression algorithms and accurately detect infected files contained within the archives. However, their interface is rather convoluted and may be best suited to more advanced users. Should be used in conjunction with a firewall.
http://www.kaspersky.com/trials

7) G Data AntiVirusKit
AntiVirusKit provides a double layer of protection, bundling two of the best antivirus engines - Kaspersky and BitDefender - under a single, easy-to-use console.
http://www.mydigitallife.info/2006/05/31/g-data-antiviruskit-internet-security-2006-review-by-computeractve/

Answer 4

From a recent test at www.virus.gr the top 25 in virus detection capabilities are: ("in the wild" viruses)

1. Kaspersky version 6.0.0.303 - 99.62%

2. Active Virus Shield by AOL version 6.0.0.299 - 99.62% (free)

3. F-Secure 2006 version 6.12.90 - 96.86%

4. BitDefender Professional version 9 - 96.63%

5. CyberScrub version 1.0 - 95.98%

6. eScan version 8.0.671.1 - 95.82%

7. BitDefender freeware version 8.0.202 - 95.57% (free)

8. BullGuard version 6.1 - 95.57%

9. AntiVir Premium version 7.01.01.02 - 95.45%

10. Nod32 version 2.51.30 - 95.14%

11. AntiVir Classic version 7.01.01.02 - 94.26% (free)

12. ViruScape 2006 version 1.02.0935.0137 - 93.87%

13. McAfee version 10.0.27 - 93.03%

14. McAfee Enterprise version 8.0.0 - 91.76%

15. F-Prot version 6.0.4.3 beta - 87.88%

16. Avast Professional version 4.7.871 - 87.46%

17. Avast freeware version 4.7.871 - 87.46% (free)

18. Dr. Web version 4.33.2 - 86.03%

19. Norman version 5.90.23 - 85.65%

20. F-Prot version 3.16f - 85.14%

21. ArcaVir 2006 - 83.44%

22. Norton Professional 2006 - 83.18%

23. AVG Professional version 7.1.405 - 82.82%

24. AVG freeware version 7.1.405 - 82.82% (free)

25. Panda 2007 version 2.00.01 - 82.23%

http://www.virus.gr/english/fullxml/default.asp?id=82&mnu=82

Answer 5

You can't beat free. There's a good list here of free antivirus protection. http://www.basicspywaretips.com/freevirusremovaltool.html

Answer 6

Mcafee

Answer 7

for best protection i would recommend norton,mcafee or panda
i would avoid avast or avg as they are lacking in protection and removal

Answer 8

i can highly recommend AVG, I currently use the free version which i have downloaded from http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1/lng/us/tpl/v5 or you can get the paid version which i have hear very good recommendations

Answer 9

All the FREE ones!!!!!!

Answer 10

avast or avg(free)nod32(payed).google it